Family therapy: Healing family conflicts
Recently it came to my attention that we have not re-explored the topic of family therapy for a while. I felt that it would be important to remind our listeners as well as people visiting our website what family therapy is about and what it means to seek help in this area. It is important to underatand that family therapy is a type of psychotherapy. It helps families or individuals within a family understand and improve the way family members interact with each other and resolve conflicts. There are several types and approches of family therapies and these are based on different philosophies and theoretical orientations. The website that I found from the Mayo Clinic gives a good oversight of what constitutes family therapy and how it can be helpful to individuals.
read more here:
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/family-therapy/HQ00662
Editor's note from Dr. Brian MacDonald: I heard a former teacher of mine, Dr. Sue Johnson, on the radio yesterday discussing marital and family therapy. Dr. Johnson's recent book, Hold Me Tight: Conversations for a Lifetime of Love, will be out in paperback in April. She said, and I agree, that people are more willing today to seek therapy to address relationship issues than they were 10 years ago. She sees the psychologist as a "consultant" who can provide suggestions to help families overcome conflict or other difficulties. Research in psychology has provided a good understanding of relationships and how they work, and there are therapeutic methods that have been scientifically proven to be effective in improving the bonds between people. Dr. Johnson's approach is on that we haven't talked about previously. She uses Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT) to help couples and family members create a secure bond. You can read more about her approach here.
Subscribe to The Family Anatomy Podcast by clicking here, or get your free subscription directly through iTunes. Note: Posts on Family Anatomy are for information only. If you need to talk to someone about family or mental health issues, you can get a referral from your family doctor.